FAQs
Why does Water On The Web mainly carry Environmental Water Systems product?
Over the years and since our beginnings in 1999, we have found that Environmental Water Systems consistently makes an extremely effective, high-quality range of appliances made right here in the United States. Their customer service is top-notch and USA-based, and their appliances are frequently featured in industry magazines without advertising – it a very high honor to be known in the building trade and kitchen & bath showroom industry as the leader in whole home filtration. They are constantly improving and are a pleasure to work with, and their customer satisfaction is nearly 100%. So we are proud to be focused on providing the very best, highest quality products available. We do not deal with many other water filtration manufacturers because they are either multi-level marketing gimmicks, poor quality, or present too much hassle due to poor customer satisfaction.
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What are the main benefits of owning an Environmental Water Systems water filtration appliance?
The list of benefits is long, but here is a small selection:
1. Protects you and your family from drinking, absorbing, and inhaling carcinogenic (cancer-causing) water pollutants like chlorine and its byproducts.
2. Hassle-free, self-cleaning, user-friendly appliance that only requires a filtration media change-out up to every 10 years.
3. Alleviate symptoms of asthma and allergies by providing chlorine-free filtered water for showering and humidifiers.
4. Eliminates the need for most sink filtration systems and the gimmicks of small showerhead and faucet filters, refrigerator filters, and carafe or pitcher filters.
5. Stops the destructive effects of chlorine – dry skin, brittle hair, skin irritations, and red itchy eyes.
6. Eliminates the need for expensive plastic bottles of water, which helps your budget and our planet.
7. Award-winning customer service, satisfaction, and expertise – top-performing, quality filtration is what EWS is renowned for throughout the industry.
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Whole home water filtration vs. under-sink water filtration. Which is right for me?
The answer to this question depends on the level of protection you are interested in having. You can do one or the other or both.
Here are the facts: Water treatment chemicals like chlorine and chloramine are not only harmful to humans when we drink them, but they are also harmful when we absorb them through the skin or by inhaling their vapors when bathing. We absorb more chlorine in a 10-minute shower than if we were to drink 8 glasses of tap water. Protecting a single drinking faucet with an under-sink (under-counter) filtration system is a good start to improving your family’s health and the taste of your water. However, unless you have whole home filtration, you are still absorbing toxic contaminants from any faucet or fixture that does not have an under-sink water filtration system.
We recommend under-sink water filtration as an add-on to whole home filtration if you feel it is necessary (i.e. old household plumbing, household member with a weakened immune system, or personal preference). This way, you are protected from harsh chemicals like chlorine and chloramines no matter which sink or shower you use, and you can use your under-sink water filtration system to cater to your specific filtration preferences or needs for the area in which you live. Click here to learn more about our ESSENTIAL under-sink water filtration systems, or click here to learn about our ESSENTIAL-RO reverse osmosis systems.
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How do I find out whether my water has been treated with chlorine or chloramine?
All city water is treated with either chlorine or chloramine (a toxic chlorine and ammonia compound). Although the majority of water districts use chlorine, the EPA’s new rules have prompted many water districts to start using the more aggressive and corrosive chloramine to disinfect the nation’s tap water. As of 2012, about 22% of all water districts use chloramine in our tap water, instead of (or in addition to) chlorine, and that number is growing. Chloramine is aggressive, difficult to remove, toxic to marine life, and has incited several lawsuits over its corrosive properties and destruction of plumbing. Unlike chlorine, chloramine does not dissipate or evaporate if you boil it or leave the water out in an open container. Chloramine requires extended contact time with a strong, specialized filtration media to fully remove it.
How do you find out whether your water is being treated with chlorine or chloramines? Call your water district or pull up your water report online at your district’s website. If you are still not sure, please contact customer service.
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What happens if I buy an EWS Spectrum Series for chlorine removal and my water district switches over to disinfecting the water with chloramine?
That is a legitimate concern. If your water district does start using chloramine, your EWS Spectrum Chlorine Series appliance (skus: CS-EWS-1354-7000 or CS-CWL-1354-7000) will not be able to effectively filter chloramine and their harmful byproducts. To be safe, we recommend purchasing an EWS Spectrum Chloramine Series appliance (skus: EWS-CC-1865-7 or CWL-CC-1865-7), as this appliance will remove chlorine, chloramine, and their harmful byproducts. If your district does not switch over to chloramine and ends up continuing its use of chlorine, your Chloramine Series appliance will simply keep providing excellent filtration and last even longer.
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Why is chlorine and chloramine used to treat municipal water?
Unlike individual well water, city water (a.k.a. tap water) is constantly monitored, tested, and treated in order to provide potable water to your home. In the USA, we all expect to flip a switch and our lights to go on. The same applies when we turn the faucet on – we expect water that is clear and free of harmful substances.
Municipal water treatment is responsible for removing any of the contaminants the water may pick up during its travels through the natural water cycle. Tap water is also disinfected and by law must be absent of any microbiological contaminants that could affect the health of the population. Chlorine and/or chloramine and other disinfectants are used to ensure general safety, but in doing so, create unwanted byproducts and health issues.
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Is chlorine or chloramine harmful to humans?
Unfortunately, yes. EWS developed the Spectrum Series whole home filtration appliance because chlorine, chloramines, by-products, VOCs, and man-made pollutants should not be in our water to drink, absorb, or inhale.
Chlorine not only creates a bad taste and odor in the water, but chlorine also damages our skin, hair, and nasal membranes. Chlorine exasperates respiratory and asthma issues. Chlorine is also considered a carcinogen, as it is connected to certain cancers and other well-known health issues like gastrointestinal disorders. Over time, chlorine causes rubber, metal, and plastics to deteriorate, which means fixtures, toilets, piping, and appliances will become damaged.
Chloramine (a corrosive combination of chlorine and ammonia) shares the same issues as chlorine, except the problems with chloramine are even more severe. Chloramine is more persistent and damaging to household items, appliances, and pipes and needs more contact time and specialty filtration to be removed from the water. If in doubt how your water district is treating your water or whether they will be using chloramine in the near future, you cannot go wrong purchasing an EWS Spectrum Chloramine Series, since this appliance will take care of both chlorine and chloramines.
The President’s Cancer Panel, New York State Department of Health, and now numerous doctors all recommend the use of at-home filtration devices to decrease exposure to cancer-causing agents.* The Water Quality Association has reaffirmed what independent tests show – that “home water treatment is a proven final barrier against harmful chemicals.”** We have always known this and since 1987, EWS has provided healthy, quality water for hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.
Water On The Web is about health. We are about providing the best, long-lasting filtration so we can all enjoy clean water that will help our skin and hair, help prevent cancer by removing chlorine and other carcinogenic compounds, and alleviate allergy and asthma symptoms. We carry EWS appliances because they are the top choice again and again for individuals and families that deal with asthma, allergies, eczema, Crohn’s, and other disorders that can be reduced or controlled with the help of our filtration appliances. We are firm believers of the old adage, “if you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything.”
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How do I find out if I have hard water?
Call your water district to find out exactly how hard your water is. Some of us have harder water than others, and EWS generally considers 6 grains (102 ppm or mg/l) of hardness to be on the lower end of hard water. If you are still not sure or have questions, contact customer service.
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Is hard water harmful?
No, hard water is not harmful. Water from oceans, rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands evaporates and falls to the ground as rain or snow, and is filtered through the Earth’s surface and bedrock, picking up natural calcium and magnesium minerals along the way. Water hardness is determined by the concentration of the naturally found calcium and magnesium minerals and is not considered a contaminant. Some people, however, complain about the taste of hard water and the fact that over time hard water can stain clothes, dishes, sinks, and any other surfaces that come into contact with hard water. The build-up of hard water minerals in appliances such as refrigerators and dishwashers can also negatively affect their performance and longevity. Depending on your location, the water will have varying levels of minerals (hardness).
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How do I determine my water filtration sink unit’s model number?
If you do not know your under counter sink unit’s model number, you can find it on the white mounting bracket. Counter top unit model numbers are located on the base. If you’re having trouble, please feel free to contact us for help.
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Is there a warranty on your water filtration units?
Yes. Environmental Water Systems offers a 10-year manufacturer warranty on all whole home water filtraiton systems and all point of use sink filtration units (including Heater Guard) have a 1-year manufacturer warranty. Select the system you want for full warranty information.
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The CWL and EWS Series of product both incorporate the highest USA-made quality in tanks, valves, carbon filtration media, engineering, and workmanship. The only difference between the systems is that the EWS Series incorporates the ICN Conditioner(s) to physically condition water. This conditioning assists with problems associated with water hardness.
Throughout the country, water conditions are incredibly diverse. There are municipal or well water applications that do not require any treatment regarding water hardness. The CWL Series offers filtration only for these areas without water hardness issues. We are not looking to over-sell or provide product that is unnecessary for you.
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The highest quality, proprietary Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) is used in all CWL and EWS filtration due to its high removal capacities. EWS filtration is the highest-quality available, at 1200+ iodine rating. For this reason, EWS appliances are used by children’s hospitals and health care centers worldwide. EWS filtration is used for the removal of chlorine, chloramines, gases, dyes, fuels, man-made pollutants, and volatile organic contaminants. Filtration of these contaminants compliments most municipal water for taste, odor, clarity and quality for oral intake, absorption and inhalation. Click
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For most of us, we turn on the tap and expect basic quality water that is treated, monitored, tested, and consistently delivered by the city. However, for those on their own well, this is not usually the case. Well water is generally unmonitored, untreated, and may have issues with delivery. EWS has provided a Guide for the Private Well Owner (PDF) is a comprehensive look at your well, its mechanics, and its water quality.
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To properly provide you the correct product for your home, we must know what problems we may be attempting to solve. A complete and independent well water test will provide us specific information to help you select the right product for you and your home. Click here for a complete list of what should be tested and if needed, a referral to labs.
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This is simple. We can recommend to you an independent, EPA Certified lab that provides you with an easy to use test kit. This lab sends a cooler to you, you take the sample according to the instructions, and place everything back in the cooler. Included in the price is the overnight express back to the lab for proper preservation and testing. This test was designed with EWS, Inc.’s high standards for water quality, and provides a very complete picture of your well water in order to specify correct product. Click here for a complete list of what should be tested and if needed, a referral to labs.
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Whole Home
Installation of whole home filtration appliances is no more difficult than installing a water heater. A typical installation should take a professional plumber between one and three hours to complete. Complete instructions come with every appliance and are also available online.
Sink
Installation of sink filtration units is as easy as installing a kitchen faucet. You or your professional plumber can install these units in about an hour.
Service Guides
These service guides come with each and every unit and give simple instructions for the proper set-up, installation and start-up of every system. For your convenience, all product service guides are available online.
